With the U.S. Open only one week away, the field for Erin Hills is starting to take shape. See who’s in and who’s out as the USGA conducts 10 36-hole sectional qualifiers across the country to determine the final playing spots in the season’s second major:
Germantown CC/Ridgeway CC in Memphis, Tenn. (108 players for nine spots)
Who’s in: Steve Stricker (-10), Andres Romero (-9), Troy Merritt (-9), Harris English (-9), Chez Reavie (-9), Garrett Osborn (-9), Trey Mullinax (-8), Xander Schauffele (-7), Jonathan Randolph (-7)
Who’s out: Whee Kim (-7), Scott Brown (-7), Peter Malnati (-6), Matt Jones (-5), Brian Gay (-5), Willy Wilcox (-5), Retief Goosen (-5), Stuart Appleby (-4), Cody Gribble (-4), Braden Thornberry (a) (-2)
Recap: Stricker is arguably the biggest storyline out of sectionals, earning medalist honors after the USGA denied his request for a special exemption with the U.S. Open heading to his home state. At age 50, he’ll be a big draw at Erin Hills just months before he captains the U.S. squad at the Presidents Cup. Schauffele and Randolph advanced over Kim in a 3-for-2 playoff that bled into Tuesday.
Brookside CC/The Lakes CC in Columbus, Ohio (122 players for 14 spots)
Who’s in: J.T. Poston (-12), Jason Kokrak (-11), Bud Cauley (-11), Martin Laird (-10), Keegan Bradley (-10), Stewart Cink (-10), Jamie Lovemark (-10), Bryson DeChambeau (-9), C.T. Pan (-9), David Lingmerth (-9), Ted Potter, Jr. (-9), Peter Uihlein (-8), Scottie Scheffler (-8), Talor Gooch (-8)
Who’s out: Michael Putnam (-8), Ollie Schniederjans (-7), Vijay Singh (-6), Luke Donald (-5), Nick Watney (-3), Patrick Cantlay (-3), Kelly Kraft (-2), Davis Love III (E)
Recap: The Columbus sectional annually features the strongest field, and this year was no exception as former major champs Bradley and Cink were among the qualifiers. DeChambeau made it through this sectional for the second straight year, while Cauley continues his recent strong play and Uihlein, Scheffler and Gooch earned the final spots in a Tuesday playoff. Those missing out included Donald and Singh, two former No. 1s, as well as Cantlay and Kraft, who met in the 2011 U.S. Amateur final at Erin HIlls.
Canoe Brook CC in Summit, N.J. (80 players for five spots)
Who’s in: Daniel Chopra (-11), Christopher Crawford (a) (-8), Andy Pope (-8), Scott Harvey (a) (-8), Matthew Campbell (-7)
Who’s out: Roberto Diaz (-7), Cameron Wilson (-6), Andrew Svoboda (-3), Richy Werenski (-1), Jim Herman (+1)
Recap: Chopra headlines the quintet of qualifiers nearly a decade after his last PGA Tour win. Harvey, a former U.S. Mid-Amateur champ, will be making his first U.S. Open appearance while Crawford qualified at Canoe Brook for the second straight year.
Hawks Ridge GC in Ball Ground, Ga. (36 players for two spots)
Who’s in: Stephan Jaeger (-7), Alex Smalley (a) (-7)
Who’s out: Dru Love (a) (-6), Jimmy Stanger (a) (-5), Todd White (a) (+2), Rhein Gibson (70-WD)
Recap: Jaeger shot a 58 last year en route to victory on the Web.com Tour, and also won on that circuit last month in South Carolina. He’ll return to the U.S. Open for the first time since he qualified for Chambers Bay two years ago. A chip-in eagle on the final hole left Love, son of Davis Love III, one shot short of a playoff.
Jupiter Hills Club in Tequesta, Fla. (49 players for three spots)
Who’s in: Jack Maguire (-5), Tyson Alexander (-1), Joaquin Niemann (a) (-1)
Who’s out: Eugene Hong (a) (-1), Tim Wilkinson (+1), Robert Allenby (+2), Sam Horsfield (75-WD)
Recap: Maguire left FSU to turn pro in late 2015 and currently plays on the Web.com Tour. He took home medalist honors by four shots and will be joined at Erin Hills by Alexander, son of former U.S. Amateur champ Buddy Alexander who birdied the first hole of a 3-for-2 playoff. Niemann, the top-ranked amateur in the world, birdied his 36th hole to join the playoff, then grabbed the last spot over Hong on the third extra hole.
Springfield CC in Springfield, Ohio (77 players for four spots)
Who’s in: Corey Conners (-12), Brian Stuard (-9), Brice Garnett (-8), Ryan Brehm (-7)
Who’s out: Zac Blair (-5), Tony Finau (-3), Dylan Meyer (a) (-2), Nick Hardy (a) (-2)
Recap: Conners was a runner-up at the 2014 U.S. Amateur, and he got off to a blistering start with an opening-round 61. Stuard qualified out of Springfield for the third time in the last five years, while Brehm closed strong with a back-nine 30 to close out a second-round 63 and nab the final spot over a number of PGA Tour pros and several current and former players from the University of Illinois.
Woodmont CC in Rockville, Md. (50 players for three spots)
Who’s in: Samuel Ryder (-11), Kyle Thompson (-7), Ben Kohles (-6)
Who’s out: Steve Wheatcroft (-3), Nicholas Thompson (E), Billy Hurley III (E), Jason Gore (+1)
Recap: Ryder is playing this year on the Web.com Tour, and he built a healthy cushion with a 62 in the opening round. He’ll be joined at Erin HIlls by Thompson, who won the season-opening Web.com event in the Bahamas, and Kohles, another Web veteran who closed with a 68 to finish two shots clear of fourth place.
Lakewood CC in Dallas, Texas (58 players for three spots)
Who’s in: Roman Robledo (-13), Nick Flanagan (-11), Walker Lee (a) (-10)
Who’s out: Ryan Palmer (-7), Edward Loar (-7), John Merrick (-5), Woody Austin (-2), Hunter Mahan (-2)
Recap: Robledo is playing this year on the Adams Pro Tour, and he took medalist honors after rounds of 63-66. Joining him at Erin Hills will be Lee, a recent high school graduate, and Flanagan, a former U.S. Amateur champ who last year qualified for fellow Aussie Aron Price at Oakmont. This time around, he’ll be the one hitting the shots.
Tacoma CC in Lakewood, Wash. (70 players for four spots)
Who’s in: Derek Barron (-7), Jordan Niebrugge (-2), Max Greyserman (-2), Daniel Miernicki (-1)
Who’s out: Robby Shelton (+3), Aaron Wise (+4), Lee McCoy (+7), Tadd Fujikawa (+13)
Recap: Scoring conditions weren’t easy outside Seattle, where Niebrugge snagged a spot with a closing 67 nearly two years after he challenged at The Open as an amateur. Barron opened with a 66 and was the only player to break 70 in both rounds. Miernicki nabbed the final qualifying spot in a 4-for-1 playoff over Hugo Leon, Jeff Rein and Matt Marshall.
Big Canyon CC/Newport Beach CC in Newport Beach, Calif. (103 players for six spots)
Who’s in: John Oda (a) (-11), Mason Andersen (a) (-9), Stewart Hagestad (a) (-8), Kevin Dougherty (-7), Sahith Theegala (a) (-7), Cameron Champ (-6)
Who’s out: Beau Hossler (-5), Charlie Beljan (-3), Duffy Waldorf (-1), Max Homa (E), Paul Goydos (+1)
Recap: Hagestad is the big story here, as he heads to Erin Hills two months after earning low amateur honors at the Masters. It continues a banner year for the reigning U.S. Mid-Amateur champ who seems like a lock to make the Walker Cup team in September. Theegala earned a spot in the Genesis Open earlier this year, while Hossler missed out despite an opening-round 64 at Newport Beach.
Source: Internet
